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Shotgun Home defense rounds

I'm resurrecting an old friend...a Mossberg 500 that's pushing 30 years old. I'm real familiar with 00 buck and slugs, but was wondering what most folks would use for home defense (inside the house). The considerations are pretty obvious...enough to be (potentially) lethal but not so powerful as to go through 3 walls and then outside possibly harming a neighbor.

"Common sense might be common but it is by no means wide spread." Mark Twain

With shotguns, the cup keeps whatever load you're shooting in a fairly tight pattern.
If you want to emulate the old blunderblus, you can can load the shell with wadding and no cup. Aimed down the hallway, the shot will go everywhere, definitely NOT a tight pattern.
BTW #4 buck doesn't penetrate walls like #00 does.

With shotguns, the cup keeps whatever load you're shooting in a fairly tight pattern.
If you want to emulate the old blunderblus, you can can load the shell with wadding and no cup. Aimed down the hallway, the shot will go everywhere, definitely NOT a tight pattern.
BTW #4 buck doesn't penetrate walls like #00 does.

Good advice but I don't reload shotgun shells. I do, however, reload my own rifle/pistol rounds. I'll take a look at #4 buck and see how it does.

"Common sense might be common but it is by no means wide spread." Mark Twain

For me OO buck is the only way to go for personal defense.
The military and police use this because it is effective.

Bird shot does not have the mass to penetrate deep enough to do much of anything.

https://www.theboxotruth.com/
This is a very interesting site, it started out testing some myths about bullet penetration and snowballed into a very informative wide ranging site.
Remember - birdshot is for birds.

"There is nothing so exhilarating as to be shot at without result." Winston Churchill
Member: Veterans of Foreign Wars, Vietnam Veterans of America, American Legion, AMVETS, Society of the Fifth Infantry Division

Also remember to "pattern" your shotty at different distances. Lots of good you-boob videos on how to pattern it, and do this with each style shell you intend to use. very interesting results as you move out.

I already stock several calibers of pistol and a few of rifle. For the shotgun, I have slugs and 00 buckshot.

For home defense, anything that's lethal WILL go through walls. The difference between 00 buck, #1 buck and #4 buck as far as wall penetration is minimal. The difference in lethality is that 00 buck passes the FBI penetration, as does the #1 and #4...but the #4 just barely passes. So, to keep it simple, I think the answer for me is to just stock the 00 buck.

Now to pattern it. I have two barrels. An 18 1/4 cylinder choke (aka no choke) and a 26 inch modified choke.

"Common sense might be common but it is by no means wide spread." Mark Twain